Posts by URCHINPAW

the newly named honeypaw's words set her at ease, and soon enough she gave her own weary smile. "no promises." urchinpaw replied coyly, in a clearly half-serious manner. eventually, she started to think about what juniperstar had decreed and her mind became clouded with uncertainty. three days wasn't a lot of time at all. how much would she have recovered by then? she didn't even want to consider the fact that she may not be well enough to fight in the war. they'd need every able bodied cat for this fight. she'd be much to slow with these injured ribs. it was frustrating, knowing that she quite possibly would be a sitting duck in the equation. she thought back to how she'd gotten hurt in the first place, due to a loss of her footing in that oak tree on the battlefield. she should have been better. perhaps she ought to take honeypaw's words to heart and try her best to get well before then. at the very least, she'd have to be able to travel if the battle rendered them victorious. she was missing home just as much as the rest of them. "congratulations, honeypaw." urchin meowed softly, although her features were dull with worry.

her eyes wander to beepaw, whom she'd seen around before, then to the other young cat who was apparently named spicepaw. a clean-up was definitely doable for her, and it would prove to be helpful in gaining some of her mobility back. a younger, less ambitious urchinpaw might have turned her nose up at the thought of cleaning up some other clan's camp, but she knew better. she was older now, and wiser: she understood that she'd have to do her part to help out. "sure thing, crimsoncry. we'll get started on that right away."

thunderclan was one of unwavering loyalty, of justice and order. or so they said. before about a week ago, urchinpaw's world seemed so much smaller. she never thought she would be traveling to thunderclan, let alone living amongst them. their ways of life felt light years away from one another, yet what united them in these trying times were camaraderie, honor and compassion for their fellow cats. at first, she didn't understand it at all, but as the days passed, everything was becoming crystal clear. it went beyond one clan simply helping another. thunderclan had nothing to gain from this unity aside from more mouths to feed, and yet they still gave them warm nests and a place to call home, if not for a little while.

urchinpaw was often up before the sun, a restless soul who was always on the move, but as of late, her injured rib had made most movement pretty painful. the medicine cats had done a good job of keeping her comfortable though, and this morning, the pain was significantly less intense. she was grateful; she could breathe now without clutching her flank in agony. now, she just felt a little sore. she had a strict regimen of herbs each day: raspberry leaf to ease the pain, comfrey root to help the bone heal, juniper berries to help build her strength back. herbs were terribly bitter things, but she'd be a fool not to take them. she wanted to be as prepared as she could be before the final battle. if she was too slow, she'd only be a liability.

golden seagrass eyes fluttered open, catching the receding stars and moonlight twinkling down on her. the sound of the crickets were so peaceful, and the first fireflies of newleaf were busy blinking away. her paws itched for movement of some sort, she needed some way to stretch her weary limbs. all she was doing nowadays was resting, but she needed to keep herself strong. besides, urchinpaw was known for being as stubborn as they come. she could picture natalina hounding her for not staying glued to her nest and the thought brought a tiny smile to her face. she was grateful for her, for how caring she was, if not a little overbearing. cautiously so as not to wake the other sleeping apprentices, she tiptoed towards the den exit, careful not to step on any paws or tails on the way. the first thing she saw when she came out into the night was beepaw, a tom that she hadn't really known all too well. she paused for a split second, wondering if she would annoy him if she came up to him, but she set that thought aside for the sake of making conversation and getting to know him a little more. the curly-furred tortoiseshell padded up beside him, sitting on her haunches stiffly so as not to hurt herself in the process. she instantly looked to the sky, to the first hints of morning beginning to peek over the horizon. "what a crazy few days its been." she sighed idly, before turning her head and glancing down at beepaw with wide, shimmering eyes. "i'm surprised i'm not the only one awake right now. what's the matter? couldn't sleep?" the girl asks, genuinely curious. "you know, i really hope that starclan will set things right again, but i just don't know if i buy it. i mean, the weather? the rats? even the moon was covered by dark clouds the night the gathering was supposed to happen. you've probably got a lot on your mind."

the dens here are suffocating, too close to the ground.

urchinpaw nodded matter-of-factly in agreement. she, too, preferred the treetops. as a youngster, she was terrible at climbing. she just didn't have the same finesse that her peers did. but she was forced to learn by the time she was named an apprentice. she had a late start after being nest-ridden for nearly a moon, following her close brush with death from rat-bite fever. in hindsight, it was almost comical; that infected rat that attacked her as a 4 moon old kit was the first of many to come. now they were overrun, driven from their home and left beaten, wounded, and defeated. her near-death experience was like a bad omen, perhaps even sent from starclan as a warning. only those starry cats knew now. the whole thing felt like a fever dream.

"i think i'll be okay. trust me, if i can fight off an infected rat bite, a few busted up ribs are no problem. it's urchinpaw we're talking about here. it'll take a lot more than that to keep me out of the fight." with a chuckle, although she licked a paw and drew it over her ear in what could be taken as a nervous gesture. deep down, she was very troubled. if the battle was going to happen soon, would she be well enough to help? if she was too slow, she'd just be dead weight. then again, she couldn't stand to sit on the sidelines and do nothing! this was bigger than herself, bigger than all of them. this was no time for weakness, no time for self doubt! and yet, why did she feel a pit of despair welling in her stomach...? urchin glanced down at her paws, then over at bee.

"i'm not sure about starclan.. i just wish i knew what was going on. but.. hmm.. thunderclan is just like the stories we were told as kits, don't you think? their way of life is so different from our own, but i can't say i've hated being here. i've met a lot of nice cats, and this alliance is gonna be so good for us." she took notice of his unease, and frowned sympathetically. she wasn't the best at comforting others, her face heated up in a furious blush as she scrambled to find the words. one ear fell flat against her head, the other swiveling. "h-hey.. it's gonna be alright. we're skyclanners, right? it's hard not to worry, i know, but.. well, we're in this together." her intense gaze was unwavering, searching his features for any more concern. she wanted him to feel better, she really did. but what words could she utter that could truly help? everything was so uncertain.

//HHHHHH track for now ive got an online exam to take but :0

//awww that's okay, no worries at all! im just glad you've got it back <3 also im sorry if this post sucks im sooo tired rn xD

oh course, urchinpaw had to play off the fact that she was nervous when a calico she-cat who was around her age stepped out. it took a few heartbeats for her to actually be able to get a clear picture of her, but once she did, it became clear that this girl wasn't going to rip her throat out on sight. she took notice of her concern, feeling rather embarrassed as she recalled just how bad her injuries must have looked. truly, they were horrendous, but the young apprentice had a funny way of downplaying serious matters such as wounds. her ears pricked and golden eyes widened as the darkclanner picked up on the fact that she was most likely a skyclanner. "so.. i suppose word travels quickly amongst the clans.." she mused aloud, sadness pricking at her at the thought of her clan's recent misfortune. a moment later, she glanced down to her paws, expression turning grim. "yes, our clan was overrun with rats.. they drove us out of our territory, out of our home..!" her eyes burned with passion and rage, shimming like flickering flames, "i know we aren't necessarily allies, but.. well, i didn't know what else to do. food would be helpful, but i'll understand if there's nothing you can do. i realize i've probably already overstayed my welcome.." her spine shivered at the thought of a less tolerant warrior coming along to find her there. surely they wouldn't show her as much mercy as this kind molly was. her face was bashful and red; had she seen her scared, backing into the tree and crying out as if she ran into some cutthroat? after a second hesitation, she uttered, "i'm urchinpaw.. what's your name?" she kept her gaze steady on the other, intense and fierce.

urchinpaw took up the rear of the group as juniperstar had advised the injured to do, adrenaline coursing through her veins at the prospect of war. contrary to last time, the young apprentice was fearless. this was the the final stand, the day they won against the rodent menace that uprooted their way of life. with the loners and thunderclanners by their side, their numbers had swelled greatly, and a good thing they had, too; many of the skyclanners were still weak from the last battle, including her. the soreness of her healing ribs was her last concern right now. she just knew she couldn't screw up like last time. she needed to be sharp, agile. her mistake before cost her her tail. the wound was a jagged nub, but honeypaw and tawnydove had made sure it avoided infection and was set to heal properly. she wasn't going to let the rats take one more thing from her. the golden pools of fire in her eyes intensified as she saw the rats running toward them at once, as if they had a hive mind controlling the entire lot of them.

the first wave of rats were mostly tackled by the cats on the front lines, but some rats completely surpassed them and began trickling through the cats, one by one. it took a while for them to reach urchinpaw, but once they did, she did as her leader told them all and fought whilst zigzagging her movements, hissing a battle cry of pure fury as she swiped left and right. her constant movement meant that the rats had a hard time getting behind her, so that the advantage was her own. she knew her ribs were hurting, but her blood surged with the heat of the fight and she almost couldn't feel a thing. she could only hope that she wouldn't injure herself further.

//quick sleepy post! cx

"i'll go with you, sedgeroot. i want to learn everything i can about starclan." came urchinpaw's voice as she spoke up, determination plain on her face. she had heard many stories about the moonstone and the mysteries it held, and quite honestly, she never thought she'd have such an opportunity so early in her life. as such, her eyes sparkled with the joy of a kit at the thought, shuffling her paws in place as she stood before her mentor excitedly.

the next thing urchinpaw knew, a large line of rats had split her from sedgeroot. in that instant, her guard fell, just long enough for her not to notice one particularly bold rat who decided to lunge for her flank. her mentor's warning came just in time, and in a flash, she spun on her heels and struck out with her hind limbs in a powerful kick, connecting with the rat and sending it careening into a tree. teeth bared, she saw an opening, got a running start, and launched herself over the stream of vermin standing between her and sedge. she landed on a fat one, instantly bringing her fangs to its jugular for the killing bite. tossing it aside, she stood with her back to the dark tabby whom she had come to view as a father to her, shouting with the zeal of battle, "come on! is that all you've got?"

a frightened and pained yowl pierced the air, tearing urchinpaw from her focus, a deep sinking feeling settling in her chest. she knew that voice, right away, but it was almost like she didn't want to believe her own ears. across the sea of foul creatures was the beautiful flame point honeypaw, surrounded and in trouble. "h-honeypaw, no! watch out!" came the tortie's cry as she spotted her getting attacked from multiple sides. she didn't want to leave sedgeroot's side, but she needed help, so urchinpaw hoped he could handle himself for the time being. she leapt and thrashed her way through rats, seemingly hundreds of them, desperate to come to her fellow apprentice's aid. skylan couldn't afford to lose anyone else, let alone a medicine cat apprentice so full of promise. she wasn't going to let that happen, not honeypaw.. she had to save her.

her heart surged with valor and finally she made her way to her, although she suffered quite a few bites on the way. she was slowing down, gradually losing steam, but her expression was just as fierce as before. she clamped down onto the rat who was sinking its teeth into her ankle, desperately hoping that it would be enough to free its grip on her. meanwhile, she struck outward with her hind legs at any rats who dared attack her from behind.

the final battle had been rough, to say the very least. continuing to fight in the wake of her previous injuries left her sore and painful. but now, as days had passed, she felt as though the worst was over and she could finally revel in the fact that skyclan's home was theirs again. reuniting with the other half of the clan and celebrating their victory together was probably one of her happiest moments. she was enjoying a plump rabbit in the shade of the trees near the apprentice den when she heard her mentor calling her name. she glanced up, eyes beaming warmly as he came over to where she was laying. she felt a pang of guilt surge in her chest when she caught sight of his injured eye, but tried her best not to let it show. had she been there for him in the first battle, might he still have his full vision? she regretted it terribly, and though others might disagree, she felt that she held the blame. she drew a paw over her face to mask her troubled thoughts and clean up some of the blood from her meal. "good afternoon, sedgeroot, i'm feeling much better now that i know the battle is won. everything feels like it's back to normal." he comments on her injuries, to which she just gives him a mischievous smile. "worried about me, are we? honestly, a walk sounds great. today i'm finally losing some of the soreness. besides, it'd probably be good for me to keep somewhat active."

"hey, milkpaw, pick on someone your own size, mouse-for-brains!" shouted urchinpaw as she stepped forward, fangs bared, anger clearly splayed on her face. he was a quiet individual, she'd probably never said a single word to him her whole life, which made it all the more confusing why he felt the need to attack another clanmate over an offhanded comment. she'd seen the whole thing unfold, and had the situation not escalated so quickly, she would have been the first to intervene. however, milkpaw crossed the line. had she been a bit more rational and less blinded by her own temper, she would have held her tongue rather than agitate the situation further, but all of it just felt so unfair. for the rest of his life, that npc would bear those scars. then juniperstar's words reverberated in her head, and she lowered her posture, ears dropping, and although she was still pissed, she dismissed it with a frustrated grunt and a pointed turn of her head. she knew they were right. there was no point wasting her energy on this tired ordeal. her jaws parted, as if forming some kind of apology, but instead she muttered, "you ought to channel that aggression into something other than turning on your own clanmates. like.. training. or something."

"everyone knows that beetles are the best, have you ever seen them fight? in a bug's world, they're armored beasts with a nasty temper to match. i can respect that." chimed urchinpaw, grinning as she approached. she gave a warm flick of her tail towards applepaw, who appeared to be in high spirits. since sedgeroot was both of their mentors, she almost felt like applepaw was someone she had to watch over. check up on. she briefly remembered how it was when heronstar passed, how uprooted his life became. he didn't take it well, the poor thing, but who could? she couldn't imagine losing her family so abruptly. in any sense, it was encouraging to see him out and about making conversation. urchin was happy to contribute.

YEEEE you're too sweet ^u -

finals were good! just stressful as usual and doing them online was somehow much worse for me xD but now im back with the skyfam <3

no surprise, urchinpaw had landed herself in a bit of trouble. a friendly game of tag with a couple of npc apprentices had quickly turned not-so-friendly as she quite literally tackled one of them down a hill before sending them both careening into a maple tree trunk. while the tackle was intentional, the downhill tumble wasn't, but frankly, her aggression felt warranted. this particular apprentice believed himself to be the fastest, and while he was admittedly pretty swift, the girl was determined to show him up and humble the arrogant twerp. he really deserved to be knocked from his high horse, and besides, she wasn't about to look like a weakling in front of the others! however, she had a tendency to take things a bit farther than they needed to go. he scrambled ahead through the forest, yowling, "catch me if you can, slowpaw!" weaving left and right between the trees. on the outside, he was hardly taking her seriously, but deep down he was nervous to lose; she could tell by the way he caught himself every time she was closing on him. urchin's muscles burned as their chase endured, but neither of them showed signs of slowing down anytime soon. finally, she started gaining serious ground, and the thrill of victory sent a surge of courage through her. with a high leap and limbs outstretched, she shouted "gotcha!!!" as she crash landed atop the tom. he lost his balance, tipping to the left as he struggled in vain to squirm away from her, right down a conveniently placed steep hill equipped with brambles and thorns. thankfully, neither of them were very hurt. his pride, though? never coming back from that. she thought coyly as she shook herself off and stumbled back to her paws. her chest puffed, crooked and recently-healed tail erect. "how's it feel being the second fastest apprentice in skyclan?" the tortie hooted, sticking her tongue out in a mocking manner before erupting in riotous laughter. she was a poor sport for laughing, sure, but this win was earned, and she felt unstoppable. her rival didn't think it was so funny. with his face scrunched up in anger, he proceeded to fire back at urchinpaw, and she wasnt going to take that disrespect lying down. soon enough, a full on verbal quarrel ensued, loud enough to catch the attention of a couple warriors passing by. although the tom tried to play the victim when they were questioned as to what happened, they were both given deplorable chores as punishment. ironically, urchinpaw got the worst one: ridding the elders of ticks. unfortunately, she was already plenty familiar with the task. it was sure to be a long day.

mouse bile smelled horrendous. she'd have to groom her paws for weeks to rid the smell from them. probably not, she was super dramatic, but on the long list of chores she'd willingly do, this was near the very bottom. as if the smell alone wasnt enough to aggravate her, the poor senile elders were chock full of stories of their ancestors and heroic warriors of the past that they'd told about a hundred times already. the elder she was working with now was a grumpy she-cat covered in bald patches and scars from her long duty as a warrior. she complained and snapped no matter what urchinpaw tried, and it definitely made the whole process a lot more tiresome. she had to try really really hard to keep it together. by the time she was finished, it was nearly sundown and her back ached. across camp, she locked eyes with the rival, who no doubt had just finished his laborious chore for the day. she gave him dagger-like eyes that said: you'd be a fool to cross me again in this lifetime.

"what a punk." she muttered under her breath.

does anyone have plots/thread ideas for bby urchin i really need to develop her ic relationships xc

//teen angst as bby deals with lack of body positivity + loneliness cx

eyes the color of fresh coffee beans were sparkling with tears as urchinpaw gazed down onto her reflection in the river. she was growing, more and more each day, looking and feeling less like the exuberant and confident young kit she once was. she was slightly more chubby than her peers; at first it didn't bother her all that much, but nowadays her heart yearned for a sense of belonging, as most teenagers did. her pelt was dingy and wild with curls and tangles galore, muddy and muted tricolor fur seemingly mashed together on her haphazardly. now with her latest injuries, her half-chewed off tail was bent at a strange angle, the fur probably would never grow in as thick there. she didn't feel pretty, even feminine, and it made her sick to her stomach to see herself in the gently rippling water by her paws. why couldn't she have pristine white fur, or even warm ginger? why in the world was she a heavyset, tomboyish girl who just wanted to feel like she mattered? she wanted to pursue romance, it felt like the dreamiest thing in the world in her mind, yet she didnt know how she could possibly be desirable to someone. urchinpaw screwed her eyes shut, allowing tears to fall as she swiped a paw into the river with a splash and turned tail with a quiet sob. she hated to admit it, but she was terribly lonely. she didn't have many friends besides slatepaw, really, but ever since they became apprentices they were a little more distant than before. being trained by two different mentors would do that to a friendship, she supposed. even so, she longed for affection, for love, something that she felt that she lacked most of her young life. her mother wasnt really around anymore, nor was her sister; she was grateful to sedgeroot for many things, but she was most grateful for his role as a father figure to her. he was just so much more than a mentor to her. as someone who never knew anything about her father, urchinpaw saw sedgeroot as the most important cat to her right now. he stepped in and made her feel wanted, even through all her rebellious streaks she had when she was smaller. her heart sank as she thought back to how scared she was for him when he sustained life threatening injuries to his eye after the first rat fight; she couldn't bear to see him in pain. that's when she vowed to herself that she would fight for and defend her loved ones and her clans no matter what. she was gonna be the strongest she could be, for them. but she couldn't have that thought without feeling doubts and fears creeping in. what if her world turned upside down and something happened to him? she would truly have no one. the thought of being alone was scarier than any rat invasion, in her mind. be it puberty-induced hormones or the fact that she was having an emotional night, urchinpaw felt terrible for so many reasons. though, she could only stand to face these feelings when she was alone with her thoughts. opening up to someone just seemed... scary? and usually she was so fearless. why did this feel like a battle she couldn't win?

starclan.. what do i do? please, send me guidance, send me anything..

she used a shaky paw to wipe away her tears as she took a deep breath and concentrated on gathering her composure as she made her way back to camp. my head is throbbing... ugh. she thought to herself as she kept her eyes downcast and narrowed.

//enter aggressive af bully urchinpaw

"ugh, mouse bile." she groaned, on account of the odor. urchin hadn't interacted with milkpaw since his violent outburst, but the girl was never one to hold a grudge for any reason and figured he must have just been having a rough day. back when the rats were around, there was enough tension to suffocate the air. she wouldn't hold it against him. in fact, the thought of his previous aggression made her even more inclined to let him in on that whiny npc who ratted and got them both in trouble just for being a sore loser. she sat on her haunches, licking a paw with a shudder as the taste of the mouse bile hit her tongue, casually trying to wash herself as she stared dead ahead at the fellow who ticked her off earlier. "that guy. he totally got us both in trouble. but its his own fault; he just couldn't stop gloating for three heartbeats and it left him covered in thorns at the bottom of a ditch." she chuckled, although her pelt still itched with anger. "i'll bet that's the last time he or any apprentice thinks about challenging me." the corners of her mouth lifted into a smirk, merely because she felt that she could back her words with action. "that's what sets the cowards apart from the brave ones: who's willing to make their enemy eat their words?" she was certainly getting way too ahead of herself; this wasnt an enemy after all, he was just another apprentice who made a silly mistake that got him in trouble. but now, urchinpaw felt stronger, more sure of herself. for a split second, she could almost imagine how milkpaw must have felt when he slashed that npc for talking smack. perhaps they had more in common than she once thought?